the complexity of the planning code is difficult enough to comprehend, especially with the number of legislative changes we incur in any given year. however, we have heard and are currently addressing the issues of being able to have some better knowledge and working relationship with them. i have already spoken with the captain of the fire department and he has agreed to create training for our staff and i intend to do the same so we can at least address some of those basic issues and some of our code set conflict with one another don't create additional for -- additional burden on any applicants. >> just another question around enforcing. i know our inspectors are the ones usually out there

inspecting. so on issues like enforcement of the use of buildings, and possible changes use without a review, are you doing something around inspection on how our departments work together to use us, since we are out there? something better, i would say because that requires training as well. >> i would say that is a potential down the line type of thing we could look at. we currently do not use building inspectors as much as we probably could. they like it that way. >> they are use related as opposed to structural. it is the zoning, it is used, it is all of those issues that create problems around land use in san francisco. >> surprisingly, our eyes in the

neighborhood do a good job of finding issues. >> and sometimes creating them. >> we have historically had that issue of not working together as well as we could, and i think it is a combination of training and setting up the protocol of working together. >> there is always room for improvement. >> any additional comments? >> certainly from the stakeholders' point of view, communications with planning has improved in the last year. thanks to the new zoning administrator and yourself, it has been refreshing. for a long time, we were classified as the ugly duckling. you were over there in trump tower.

probably not as nice a place as you guys had. we take little of that out of the equation, we get along all lot better. >> i have a few more to ask if not that laura lee is taken to consideration. one of those on priority policies. one issue that comes to mind beyond earthquake would be to take into consideration on the coastal side, the tsunami zone. that is an area that clearly needs to be addressed, and along the inboard side of the day, on the environmental category of the sea level rise, those are two priorities that should be taken into consideration for your priority policies. >> if i could address that quickly, fema required all

jurisdictions that border water to conduct a new flood control ordinance and reassess floodplains. san francisco never was in a flood plain and now the city has adopted a flood plain ordinance. >> another would be on ceqa, from the standpoint of those buildings that are 50 years old or older, some categories by which by virtue of just their age automatically qualifies them to have this level of review? a 50-year-old industrial building that has no real category of merit -- >> any building 50 years or older is a potential historical

resources. we have two shifts a dedicated with the preservation planner and they can make quick determinations as necessary. it is slightly subjective in that if they feel is necessary, they can require it, but just because the building is 50 years or older does not make it a historical resource. >> thank you very much for making this presentation and we look better to a half -- we look forward to a higher and better collaboration moving on. thank you. >> any public comment on item number five? >> good morning. i am an architect and member of the american institute of architects and i have been practicing in san francisco with my own firm since 1987.

i am encouraged by this move to integrate the two departments more closely. better communication and better understanding. i am understands -- hopefully this new spirit will cause you to accept that invitation. i am here today because part of the problem the two departments have is that they are both the government by a local ordinance and as state law, the california building code. san francisco inc. and own amendments and enforces both the state law and local amendments as well. planning has a similar job and the general plan is a county- adopted ordinances. in trying to do both jobs, each department has to depend on the other for referrals and information in order to do the

job the law requires of them. just like planning cannot grant a building permit without code compliance to either san francisco amendments, neither can the building department issued a permit without ceqa compliance for general plan referrals. that is the part that is the hardest. there seems to be either a lack of understanding of what is required of building department personnel to get to see the permit applications first, or in some cases, and and run around a planning review for a particular project. hopefully that will become a thing of the past and we can move forward. thank you. >> thank you.

>> good morning. i want to bring to you and other specialty issue on this topic of joint sharing responsibility for building permits with the planning department's having to do with follow up on expired permits. i was concerned about the rules of the game between each of the departments on how to deal with expired permits and i inquired on a sunshine request to william strawn who said the planning department has different rules and require approval after a permit has been expired three years. but they stated that's a permit issued is not vested until all work starts. but there is no determination on what that means. when an against -- when an expired permit happens, there's no one who says what gives you

use started. there are no photographs required and there are multiple, multiple, multiple examples of expired permits well over three years, beyond 10 years sometimes, that have been renewed without referral to planning. that compromises the ability of the planners because they never saw the permit. i want to refer to use this document i got and you can look at it and start to formulate a better procedure. there are procedures proposed by planning th integrated into building. this is the first conversation i want to bring to your attention -- there is a lot of stuff needing to be done. on another matter, i would like to mention the fact that windows, there are windows in every building and there is a thing called the standard for window replacement 2010 by the

planning department. this is completely ignored on a routine basis. people come in and say place in time, good to go. there are caveat and they want people to look at them. this building department has to recognize the buildings that are over 50 years old need to be specially reviewed and it should not be automatic because there is an unkind request. this document talks about windows that face the public right of way. when i see an application for the replacement of windows, and they don't ask where, are there 50 windows being replaced or 1? without the information on the actual description, we don't know this should be going to the building department or planning department. i'm simply trying to bring to your attention the kind of

disconnect that bring people into problems. i support the idea of having people from building going to the planning commission. thank you and going to leave you with this documentation. >> is there any additional public comment? seeing nine, item number six, item on disaster training units >> good morning. i'm from the department of

building inspection reporting on this issue. let me give you a little background. our disaster coordination unit was activated on march 7th, 2011, with the assignment of the acting chief as manager and seizing -- existing housing manager reporting to the deputy director. last may, we came before you to outline our work plan time line, which we will update today. just to give the a mission statement, our mission is to prepare, coordinate, and organize department personnel and resources to provide and effectively manage response to earthquakes, and other disasters in conjunction with the department of emergency management. we have been working very diligently since the last time we came here. let me give you an update on some of the activities.

all of the functions we have been undertaking are part of the signed emergency functions under the city's all emergency plan. we have disaster worker training, we have 240 staff who have completed their fresher for responsibility and reporting requirements under state and local law. this was part of a merrill directive for city staff. this involves a video or fresher of what your role is. every city employee will be given some assign a fair called to assist in a disaster. another area is the safety assistance program which is a certification renewal for building inspectors and engineers required under state law and fema eligibility criteria. there are more extensive lists

throughout the city departments which we maintain and it's also maintain that the state level in sacramento. part of the process is an online certification which we will go through. it involves assessing buildings, rapid assessment and engineering evaluation. all of that information is involved and very comprehensive training and is really important to get their freshers on a regular basis as things change. another important activity is a national information management system. it operates under the incident command system. these are freshers will be provided over the next year as part of a multi-year training plan based on the national preparedness guidelines target capabilities list. there is a huge book and here

are the ideal situations in terms of rare -- preparedness and recovery elements. the gap you analyze between where you want to be and where you need to go -- once you identify the gap, there are training resources that are plugged into that. the ultimate goal is a financial one -- now you can qualify for grants to meet these objectives. another aspect is the community action plan for seismic safety. we have been attending regular weekly educational seminars to obtain the latest information from technical experts to have been brought in as speakers to assist in mitigation and recovery efforts over the

august, we had a series of meetings which were very helpful. representatives from the state talking about money and various training opportunities. another area is communication, which is essential for us. we have 800 mhz radio training and field exercises have been implemented for all divisions. last week, we conducted some and we are conducting ongoing trading -- training for building and electrical as they take radios on their daily business. we are in the process of updating the list. when you do these exercises, we have the plan, but unless you actually perform the exercise and to drill, that's the time people realize what they were not supposed to do and just to see the functionality of the equipment. all of those important city protocols. >> i have a question on that

particular subject. these radios the first responders have, do they take them home with them? let's say all they communication is not dow, -- currently, there is no policy or requirement for staff to bring those radios home. >> how do we get in touch with them. how did they get in touch with us? >> as part of the mobilization guidelines, there is a predetermined protocol in terms of the function and there's a call tree and who gets the call and who is activated in some kind of redundancy either through cellphone or personal phone. in an extensive disaster where communication would be nonexistent, it would be through the media to tune in for specific instructions this city

will make for you to report. we do not want people reporting without any instructions. if you have a predetermined instruction, you will tune in to your supervisor or use the call tree protocol. we require inspectors take these radios into the field. it is an expensive tool. no leaving it in the car. we have had some that are stolen and in a disaster -- >> are the first responders certified? >> we would not be considered a first responder. that's going to be emergency personnel, police and fire. our role is based on initial damage and safety which would be activated based on the critical facility in the assignment there was. once we get reports of where the damages or where the hazards

are, we will direct our teams to those locations and get the reporting information on that. an important area is facilities and equipment. our 2001 room -- in august, we looked at all the communication equipment, including digital and analog telephones. we have network computers and workstations inspected and tested for emergency use. we are planning more training exercises to get this up and running. october 28th is the great shakeout. it will be initiated from sacramento and we will participate with that. they're locked storage areas have been cleared and organized.

i want to mention again that we've talked to our directors about this that future improvements would include a wireless system, and reduce set up time during activation. we could be in that room if we have an event, everybody has to leave that we have to activate ceiling tiles and get this things up. many other departments, depending on their resources and budget -- they are at various levels of technology and comfort as we look through those. we are touring those and have various meetings within working groups in the city and we attend those meetings. the emergency command vehicle is currently parked at building 606. it is available for deployment when needed.

the continued use and operational costs, it's a ford motor tom, is being determined for effectiveness and efficiency for rapid deployment during an emergency. we are valuating our transportation resources that will be needed to fill our function. we just serviced the vehicle, it is up and running and some of the departments were looking at using it for a couple of events coming up, possibly america's cup. its is something we need to look at. as technology changes, our ability to respond rapidly changes and to evaluate those resources -- >> another one is the bay area urban security issue -- bay area security initiative. there is a grant cycle and we submitted a proposal for mobile devices. this morning, matthew green was

with the department of emergency management and we're having the grant scoring or the departments come in with their proposals and we score and evaluate these grants and they go to a disaster council group that will evaluate which ones we think have the best chance of being successful. the grant money has really been cut back. is half as much as last year. the key is, good experience for us, we want to get any available grant funding we can for our department and staff. we want to target what we want for a very specific use. these mobile devices would come back to our tracking system and save countless times in terms of documenting data and damage and safety assessments. these devices were compatible and used extensively during

hurricane katrina. we gave amazing statistics in terms of how much time it saved getting the data back for that. >> in terms of personal preparedness and safety, which is very important, the human- resources ready to go, we have bags but we have been ordered for all of our staff, and they will be stored at their work stations and be used in an emergency. they contain safety tools and will be updated annually. some departments have informed their staff to get the bag and put it together yourself. we educate people you should have your own bag in preparation at your home, but this is something at your workstation. depending on the event, it could be a lifesaving feature. >office of emergency supply

kids, a lot of water was removed from the building and now have filter systems. in our building, we have six floors and we ordered for use of each of the six floors to support about 120 persons. they're basically little kit that sits on the floor that includes water, sanitation, first-aid tools in the case staff and citizens are sheltered in place during an event and we have customers and lead to accommodate their needs. this is going to be a big issue -- water and sanitation. part of the items i have identified is that we want to show our staff our commitment to what we are going to supply them with. that they are ok and they can help the rest of the city family. i want to focus on our emergency

support functions. we are in the process of doing our guidelines in drafting that was public works. discussing public buildings and and the other external agency to come up with a good, strategic plan everyone agrees to. under our city's emergency response plan, -- one general emergency management -- one is infrastructure, which is 3 and 12 water and supplies. we are with public works, considered in that bigger apartment, along with them. we focus on safety and damage assessments as well as overall emergency management. you will find a working draft copy for organizing post disaster inspections. this outlines the process for performing inspections based on

a prioritized approach in the reporting and collection of damage assessment which will be analyzed at the emergency operations center. also attached is a copy of the earthquake and x which shows us some data in terms of the type of structure we have an just the sheer numbers based on the neighborhood. so we know where the damage will occur most likely for an earthquake, the same areas as it did in 1989, so that is where we are trying to focus our critical task force and response ability. we are in the process of developing a multi-year training plan for all our staff. the matrix of what abilities they have, the tools and abilities they have, it will continue right along. the idea again is as part of their regular duty and performance of valuation will

take a segment of their meetings and focus on emergency preparedness. this is one of these things where we train the staff and it is focused today and we forget about this and have to revive it again. i am available for questions. we have been going to a lot of meetings with other departments to try to work out these guidelines and make sure it is smooth in terms of how this works together. when the event happens, sometimes these plans go up the window, but we have worked on a regular basis -- when it's activated during different events, each division and department as branches, operations, logistics', finance, etc., we have materials we're going through and some of them are very antiquated and we are updating our reference information, call lists, contact lists, so we can assist in the

other department. >> i have a couple of questions. thank you very much for the report. i have been asking for months what the guys do? you have explained it very eloquently what you are doing. it is very important public know what you are doing regarding this very important function. i thank our acting director for pushing it forward. that is tremendous. have we come up with any mechanism to get this report to the neighborhoods? >> i would say as far as this report, it would be us crafting what the guidelines are. >> somewhere down the road -- you would be able to tell us -- >> i think one of the things we

could do as we go to events we participate in, whether it is a neighborhood community fair or other events, we did have a presence where we hand out educational information. the disaster coordination unit would benefit from being a part of that. whether it is even visually in the building, more notice on a regular basis to try to publish this and get people involved. i mentioned in an e-mail that the eoc has the open house every month. public and city employees are invited to attend. it is a brief tour, but it is important to become familiar with those functions. the other benefit is i don't want to waste any resources in ms